[X] My Assistant

[Blade]

Even if that's the case, it would have been nice to have a GM section to clear up the mess, so that GMs could avoid disconnecting their games from the official timeline by using one element that's later revealed to be bogus.
But that's a problem that Shadowrun almost always had.

[hermit]

Indeed, especially since the Evo chapter has an in-world disclaimer about the real deal on Evo. Which led me to believe that which chapter is supposed to be Plan 9's voice might have been miscommunicated.

[Jaid]

well you have to admit that ares being 10% bug spirits, and more importantly their customer base being 10% bug spirits, is bigger news than ares having financial struggles (not so much ares being 10% bug spirits, although that's pretty scary, as 10% of their customer base being bug spirits.... which would imply an awful lot of bug spirits active in the world, in hiding).

unfortunately, from my end at least, it sounds pretty dumb. as others have already mentioned, that is an awful lot of bug spirits for nobody to notice. considering how big the megas are, 10% of the customers of one mega being bug spirits probably means a percentage of the world population that is uncomfortably close to 10% being bug spirits. that would have to be one heck of a cover-up operation.

[hermit]

It's Lizardman Putin nuts, that's what it is. But if this was supposed to be an utterly nuts and nonsensical writeup by Plan 9, it reads pretty authentic.

[Sendaz]

Coming this Summer....

An Arachne Entertainment Production......

Featuring the most controversial action hero to date....

Xenia, Mantis Princess

[Wakshaani]

Moving past Ares, I'm waiting to see what else Hermit has to say.

(And other people! Y'all can all post about chapters, y'know.)

[hermit]

Well, what I have to say about about Aztechnology is to be found here.

[Ixal]

Where does the 10% come from? I have only seen the entry that crackpot conspiracy theorists talk about 20-80 % bugs in Ares, but it is made clear that those are not serious numbers and all that is known is that there is bug influence in Ares but the extend is entirely unknown.

Btw, considering how Volkswagen is grilled over the emission values I don't think an excalibur fiasko is that far off.


Is it just me or do the guys of Catalyst have a beef with germans?
I know I shouldn't complain too mucn as S-K gets a full entry in Market Panic instead of only a fraction of content compared to other corps (Data Trails). Not that Catalyst had a choice in that matter as it is a 100% corp book.

What really annoys me is that the writter can't think of any way to give S-K a own culture instead of having nazi analogies.
Granted, again, Market Panic is rather good in that regard with its Roman like country building but they could't help themselves to have S-K now use nazi terminology (Fall Magenta). Data Trails was much worse in that regard.
Still, can't they think of anything better than "German = Nazi"?

I do quite like that S-K is not the largest MC any more and is desperate to get back on top. That gives them at least some profile after it was ignored so much in previous products.
And while I dislike the use of the terminology, the color Magenta was a rather good choice, assuming that it really is a plan agains NeoNet.

When I talk about S-K I can also review this chapter, but it won't be as good as hermits reviews.
As said, S-K is not the largest Mega out there any more. CFD shutting down nanofabricators hit them hard and the Dragon Civil War distracted Lofwyr from running the corp which lead to attacks by other corps now that the giant showed a weakness and also defections in the middle east.
S-Ks tiered structure is explained and also that Lofwyr is not shaping S-K as a normal corp but more as a country (Roman Style) with him on top. If that is deliberate or because of Lofwyr being stuck in old ways is left out (but it is hinted that it is the latter).

What the civil war showed is that without Lofwyr S-K is thrown into chaos as no one has a clue how to run this thing. Thus Lofwyr created a Consensus Lite which shows possible courses of actions to take while he is away.
In Germany S-K buikds a huge Arcology "Neu-Essen" (aka Lofwyr town) as his seat of power but also faces opposition from other Megas now increasing their efforts in Europe while S-K is weakened and also because a Beloit was elected chancellor. And she is smart in her fight against S-K by not going at them directly.
To get back on its feet, Lofwyr has aligned himelf with NeoNet, but is apparently ready to pounce on them and swallow as much as he can from them once they stumble (more). Thats the mentioned Fall Magenta.

[Zednark]

I think part of the reason S-K gets smaller write ups is because S-K is kinda viewed as the German team's turf. I could be wrong, though.

[hermit]

Btw, considering how Volkswagen is grilled over the emission values I don't think an excalibur fiasko is that far off.

Doesn't affect their sales in China (or Europe) much. US always was alosing market for them anyway. VW's problems come mostly from the US 'justice' system, but I can't honestly say that comes undeserved. Still, it's unlikely that would make Americans (or anyone) decide not to buy any product associated with Germany aymore, which is how far-reaching the Ares situation is made out to be. If anything, this proves the scenario is far off. And remember, we're talking cars here - something a majority of people in developed countries own and, usually, are fairly invested in. The Excalibur situation was about something that is illegal to own everywhere.

Is it just me or do the guys of Catalyst have a beef with germans?

Not with Krupp, who were set up for a fall for at least 10 books now (a plotline driven by German writers, at least in part). The AG Chemie downgrade, though. Given the display of idiocy and pettiness in the last S5 Mission, though, that's not especially Germans-focused as more general unprofessional and petty behavior.

Still, can't they think of anything better than "German = Nazi"?

The Krupp chapter was writte by a German author (Sascha Morlock). I mean, the Magenta kinda is a dead giveaway (though Deutsche Telecom actually became Hermes Eurocom, which currently is known as Aethernet). And besides, German Shadowrun has a long history of really crude Nazi terminology jammed into corporate language and projects, and it's not all due to that one Perry Rhodan author in the 90s (ever noticed the two notable German PMC both acronm SS?). Or what about AG Chemie? Stöckter? The metahuman concentration camps? Wehrhotel adolf Hitler from the original Germany SB? None of that was written up by an American author.

Ubernet was dumb, of course, but at least it wasn't a concentration camp dungeon crawl again.

[Wakshaani]

(Didn't we just cover this?) ... For teh record, there's no bad blood form teh US side. More that there's a quiet group concensus that we should leave S-K for the Germans to play with.

And there's absolutely no intention that I'm aware of to cast S-K as nazis in any way, shape, form, or fashion.

(Nazis are dicks.)

[Ixal]

And there's absolutely no intention that I'm aware of to cast S-K as nazis in any way, shape, form, or fashion.

(Nazis are dicks.)

Well there are direct nazi references in Data Trails, that strange "Why is it always the Germans" comment in Chrome&Steel and now the usage of nazi military terms in Market Trails. And the focus on S-Ks youth program can also be seen as a reference to the Hitlerjugend but that is a bit far fetched.

But enough about the past, as I said Market Panic is rather good in the way SK is described than previous products.
SK gets a distinct style apart from Dragon Corp and Hans Brackhaus and also shows some chinks in its armor which imo makes the corp more interesting than the monolithic and invulnerable entity it was in the past.

I am not well versed in SR5 lore so I cant comment on any big revelations or inconsistencies. Someone else has to look for them.
Although it would really surprise me if a politician, no matter who, can more than slightly inconvenience SK in its core territory, at least not without some serious foreshadowing.

Now if there only were some more SK consumer products to remind players that the corp exists apart from being employer or target.
But I havent read Rigger 5 yet. Vehicles seem to be the most likely case for that.

[Sascha Morlok]

Well, indeed I took 'Fall Magenta' from German military operation odes pre-WW2 (which are named Fall Gelb, Fall Grün, Fall Weiß, etc.), but just for the purpose to for a "German" naming pattern for greater operations. You are free to not like it, but in my view it's not as stu.... far of as when BMW would name one of their vehicles 'Blitzkrieg' (especially when you see how the Police often name their special units for certain cases).

The youth program (S-K Globetrotters) is - as many other parts of the chapter - direct translations of German canon. This one comes from the Rhein-Rhur-Megaplex. And why you can see them as a copy of the HJ, for me they reflect more somehting like the Boy Scouts, or - if you want a political organisation - the Freie Deutsche Jugend of the GDR. So, it is nothing I came up with. In the end it is something Lofwyr use to further integrate corporate ideology into his people, as there are - when you include the BMW history - round about 3 generations of corporate citizens now working for that mega.

S-K in most cases don't have to hire new people, it can use his own citizens to recruit them for free jobs. By hiring new people, they have to indoctrinate them real fast, while born corporate citizens you can form right from the beginning. Nonetheless, you don't have to join any activities by the Globetrotters, or any other parts of the youth programm, as just some sentences later, in that same subchapter, it is explained that S-K even tolerates, when you become a "rebel". And Some further sentences later, it is said that S-K is - after Horizon - the most tolerant corporation, which don't discriminate any of its employees. The S-K swagger/classism is something from Corp Guide, which I think fits to a corp (and fits to cyberpunk), that was number 1 for over a Generation (thou I ease it a bit by saying it is a common theme found in nearly all corporations to some extend).

[Sascha Morlok]

And Neu-Essen isn't a 90 km² arcology, but rather a city within a city, that has one arcology (the S-K Main Arcology) within its borders.

[Ixal]

Well, indeed I took 'Fall Magenta' from German military operation odes pre-WW2 (which are named Fall Gelb, Fall Grün, Fall Weiß, etc.), but just for the purpose to for a "German" naming pattern for greater operations. You are free to not like it, but in my view it's not as stu.... far of as when BMW would name one of their vehicles 'Blitzkrieg' (especially when you see how the Police often name their special units for certain cases).

The youth program (S-K Globetrotters) is - as many other parts of the chapter - direct translations of German canon. This one comes from the Rhein-Rhur-Megaplex. And why you can see them as a copy of the HJ, for me they reflect more somehting like the Boy Scouts, or - if you want a political organisation - the Freie Deutsche Jugend of the GDR. So, it is nothing I came up with. In the end it is something Lofwyr use to further integrate corporate ideology into his people, as there are - when you include the BMW history - round about 3 generations of corporate citizens now working for that mega.

S-K in most cases don't have to hire new people, it can use his own citizens to recruit them for free jobs. By hiring new people, they have to indoctrinate them real fast, while born corporate citizens you can form right from the beginning. Nonetheless, you don't have to join any activities by the Globetrotters, or any other parts of the youth programm, as just some sentences later, in that same subchapter, it is explained that S-K even tolerates, when you become a "rebel". And Some further sentences later, it is said that S-K is - after Horizon - the most tolerant corporation, which don't discriminate any of its employees. The S-K swagger/classism is something from Corp Guide, which I think fits to a corp (and fits to cyberpunk), that was number 1 for over a Generation (thou I ease it a bit by saying it is a common theme found in nearly all corporations to some extend).

As I said even I saw the connection between the globetrotters to the HJ as far fetched, but given the previous track record I didnt rule it out. And I liked the S-K Swagger.
As long future content stays at the level of Market Panic all is fine. Just dont do another Data Trails.


For something completely different, I am not sure if I like the speed Shiawase went from rising star (Stormfront & Core book) to the mess it is now. Still, conflict is good. That keeps things interesting and offers more hooks for runs.

PS: Now I want a Lofwyr plush.

[Sascha Morlok]

Data Trails wasn't me, and I just wrote S-K in Market Panic, because the original author stepped down. MP was for me the first writing for CGL.

[Sendaz]

PS: Now I want a Lofwyr plush.

And it must come loaded with Lemon Sours. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif)

[Ixal]

Data Trails wasn't me, and I just wrote S-K in Market Panic, because the original author stepped down. MP was for me the first writing for CGL.

Well then, welcome to hell.

I will leave your finaly judgment to hermit. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/wink.gif)

[Sengir]

Btw, considering how Volkswagen is grilled over the emission values I don't think an excalibur fiasko is that far off.

VW was caught cheating with their pants down. Ares merely released a sub-par product, manufacturers do that all the time. And Ares is supposed to be several orders of magnitude larger and more diversified than VW, what is a huge dent in profits for a car manufacturer should remain somewhere in the decimals for an AAA.

considering how big the megas are, 10% of the customers of one mega being bug spirits probably means a percentage of the world population that is uncomfortably close to 10% being bug spirits. that would have to be one heck of a cover-up operation.

But predator-prey dynamics say the cover-up wouldn't have to last all that long (IMG:style_emoticons/default/wink.gif)


As for "Fall Magenta", sounds like an episode from Obersalzberg (think The Office with Hitler as Brent)...Herr Hitler trying to get through customer support (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif)

[hermit]

Stuff continues.

This running review, for now, is nonalcoholic, mainly due to it being migraine week. Migraine week has nothing to do with the review's content.

The Evo chapter is narrated by Plan 9. However, it sounds far less ramblingly insane than the Ares chapter. THIS IS NOT RIGHT (no offense to the Evo author, but it had to be said).

The intro fiction is nice, illustrating the menagerie of Strange Evo has (at least in parts) become since it started out as Yamatetsu in 52.

The chapter jumps straight into the history section, which is awfully short (and omits Yamatetsu's Corp Court history), but not wrong.

From there, it jumps to the first of three major plot points: Evo's CEO, former cosmonaut Anatoly Kirilenko, is dead, and the corporation is looking for a replacement. Evo being the intergalactic freak show it is, the candidates are ... colorful. There's a free spirit of storm called Strato Cumulus (Buttercup's choice), Taylor Dacopral (an AI, backed by traditionalist Japanese remnants), Cynthia Bills (a Monad, sure to gain public confidence after the public already shuns Evo for their deep involvement with the nanopocalypse), Abhi Khala, an Indian MMA champion (the shareholders' favourite) and Ysil (a Naga; opposition to whom incited violence against naga all around the world, apparently).

The second major plot point is that Evo will do a 180 on their brand policy back to Yamatetsu's original policy of invisibility, to try and mitigate the damage their involvement in the nanopocalypse causes and is going to cause. How having a CEO that reminds everyone of this involvement will help is beyond me, but maybe this is a compromise position between whatever forces within Evo are pushing for a Monad or AI CEO and the business parts of the mega trying to still get some business done and not becoming a hot potato.

The third is, of course, Monad infiltration of/involvement in Evo, the Evo far-space travel ship building (the Monad Ark?), and the fallout. It is mostly written by Slamm-0, which makes for a less pro-Evo point of view (though seriously, just make the first part of the chapter not Plan 9 and stick his name onto the Ares chapter - isn't line developing according to Hardy all about turning lemons into lemonade?). Also, who is Sekretar? Slamm-0 finishes with Evo's expansion into Yakut.

There is a weird little OOC box, though, about Evo Products. It suggests making Evo products better than normal products by GM discretion (talk about a can of worms). Now, I really like the idea of various producers giving certain perks to otherwise generic products - for instance, Spinrad-brand cybernetics getting the additional wireless bonus of enhanced social limit, MCT-brand electronics having a +1 firewall, or Aztech-brand medkits healing a bonus box of damage - give some life to corporate branding! However, a number of examples given are odd, from stuff that already is in ChromeFlesh (False Front bioware, Gammaware) to world-breaking ("Psychokinetic abilities that allow technomancers or mundanes mental powers to move objects"). Still, all in all, a decent if not great chapter full of story arc and plot ideas. Solidly executed.

[Sascha Morlok]

BTW, here is a picture of Neu-Essen
https://sirdoomsbadcompany.files.wordpress....shadowrun-4.jpg

[hermit]

New review incoming, now that I have a lot less crap on my to-do.

[Wakshaani]

BTW, here is a picture of Neu-Essen
https://sirdoomsbadcompany.files.wordpress....shadowrun-4.jpg

That ... is a grey, grey city.

Yikes.

[Sascha Morlok]

... and still probably the best place to live within the Rhine-Ruhr-Megaplex (IMG:style_emoticons/default/wink.gif)

[Ixal]

That ... is a grey, grey city.

Yikes.

Isn't there a big park somewhere in it (see the Dryad employee entry for SK)?